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Saturday, January 27, 2018

Early Review of Surrender to the Highlander (Highlanders, #5) by Lynsay Sands

Title:Surrender to the HighlanderClassification: Adult FictionGenre: Historical RomanceSeries: HighlanderFormat: Paperback; 384 pagesPublisher: Avon (January 30, 2018)ISBN-10: 0062468987ISBN-13: 978-0062468987Author's Webstie:http://www.lynsaysands.net/Notes: I received an eARC loan from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

When Saidh MacDonnell hasn't heard from her good friend Edith in weeks, she asks her husband to have someone check on her. The last she'd heard Edith had been feeling poorly and Saidh fears the worst. Given that Saidh is four months pregnant and as big as a house, and the last messenger sent was refused entry, her husband complies. He asks Saidh's four brothers to go check on Edith. What Niels, Rory, Alick, and Geordie find is not what they expected. Illness is not the culprit as everyone assumed. Someone has poisoned the Drummond clan leaving the Laird and his two eldest sons dead.The youngest son, thinking to escape the same fate, fled with his bride and hasn't been heard from since. Edith is holding on by a thread, and Neils and Rory vow they'll do all they can to nurse her back to health and make sure she comes to no more harm.

A killer is out there.

An attraction blooms.

Can Edith resist the affections of the handsome Highlander with twinkling blue eyes who seems bent on saving her? Only time will tell...

This is the fifth book of Lysay Sands Highlander series and can be read as standalone. You may, however, wish to read 'The Highlander Takes a Bride', the third book in the Highlanders series which is Saidh's book, first. It will give you a little insight into Neils and his family along with a glimpse of the friendship between Saidh and Edith.

I really liked the mystery and whodunnit aspect of the book. I had it narrowed down to two people when the author killed off one of my suspects. It, of course, had to be the one I was leaning towards. I couldn't puzzle out the motive of the one left, however, so I thought perhaps I had it wrong until the author let the last puzzle piece fall conveniently into place. Then it all made sense.

Niels was a loyal and caring individual. He had to be talked in to checking on Edith, but once he found foul play involved, he was all in and fiercely protective. I liked how he and his brothers watched over Edith until she could take care of herself, and then didn't abandon her. They waited until the danger had passed before letting down their guard.

Edith was a smart and strong female who only broke down once in the novel. She went through a lot and instead of becoming a blubbering idiot she stayed on her toes and did what she could to help. She kept her head and put up a good defense when confronted with danger. While I liked this aspect of her, I felt she should have been at least a little more upset about her family's demise than she was. A few "I can't believe they're gone" type of moments seemed to be called for. Her lack of emotions where they were concerned just seemed a little off.

Niels and Edith were a cute couple. I loved how Niels felt he wasn't worthy of Edith because he was a third son and didn't have a lot to offer her. He was quite noble and tried to resist his feelings for her while she did everything in her power to tempt him. The courtship of these two gave me a good chuckle.

Overall, I liked the book and gave it 4 out of 5 roses. It showcased Ms.Sand's quirky sense of humor and lovable characters. It was fairly fast paced, and had a nice mixture of gravity and levity, romance and mystery, and darkness and light. On the Lisarenee Romance Rating Scale, this one earned a STEAM rating--too hot for a fan, but you still have a handle on things. You should use extreme caution when reading a book with this rating in public. People may inquire as to why you looked flustered and flushed.